Dirt Cup Latch Mechanism

ABSTRACT

A vacuum cleaner dust cup having a sidewall surrounding an open bottom end, and a shelf extending from the sidewall. A lid is pivotally connected to the cup adjacent the bottom end and is movable between a first position in which it covers the open bottom end, and a second position in which it does not cover the open bottom end. A latch is attached to the lid and has a contact surface adapted to engage the shelf to hold the lid in the first position. An actuator is mounted adjacent the cup sidewall and is movable in a first direction to move the contact surface of the latch out of engagement with the shelf to allow the lid to move about the hinge to the second position. In some embodiments, the actuator does not apply any substantial force to move the lid out of the first position.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to features for use with vacuum cleanershaving a dirt cup. More specifically, the present invention relates to alatch mechanism for release of a bottom lid of a dirt cup to allowaccess to or emptying of the dirt cup.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is well known that some vacuum cleaner types, such as upright andcanister type vacuum cleaners, use a dirt cup for collection of dirt anddebris. The dirt cup typically is removably mounted to the housing ofthe vacuum cleaner to allow a user to easily remove the dirt cup toempty the contents thereof or to change an internally mounted filter inthe dirt cup. It is also well known that dirt cups employ differentconfigurations to address how the contents, i.e., dirt and debris, areemptied. Some dirt cups use a lid detachably or rotatably mated with theupper portion of the dirt cup. Such a configuration requires the dirtcup to be inverted to empty the contents after removing or opening thelid. Other dirt cups employ a lid detachably or rotatably mated to thelower portion of the dirt cup, which allows the contents of the dirt cupto fall out with the assistance of gravity after the user removes oropens the lid. Other dirt cup lid configurations are also possible.

The lid, whether top- or bottom-mounted as described above, typically issecured to the dirt cup in some manner such that it remains in a closedposition during the operation of the vacuum cleaner. The lid typicallymust be released to open it, and can only be opened when the cup isreleased from the housing. The lid typically is attached to the cup by asecuring mechanism, such a latching mechanism, that must be actuated torelease the lid. Various types of latching mechanisms are well known inthe art. Examples of such mechanisms include, but are not limited to,friction fits, interference fits, bayonet fittings, clasps, hasps,clips, latches, and screws. Ideally, the latching mechanism should beeasily manipulated by the user.

Some lid latching mechanisms employ a remote actuator that allows theuser to actuate the mechanism from a location removed from the liditself. For example, a cable may be used to remotely pull a pin or movea latch that holds the lid in place. The use of a stick or rod as anactuator to release or actuate the latching mechanism is also wellknown. The user typically actuates such an actuator mechanism byapplying a downward force to the actuator causing the actuator to applya force to the latching mechanism. This force drives the latchingmechanism away from its attachment point or otherwise disengages thelatching mechanism, to allow the lid to open, and also applies a forceto the lid structure to move the lid away from the dirt cup. Other lidand lid latch actuation means are also known. Such remote actuators maybe desired to allow the user to easily actuate the latching mechanism,from a location where it is less likely for dirt in the cup to contactthe user. For example, a remote actuator may transmit the opening forcefrom the top of the dirt cup, to open a lid at the bottom of the dirtcup.

Often, a hinge mechanism is used in conjunction with a latchingmechanism to attach the lid to the dirt cup. This allows the lid to opento allow access to the interior of the dirt cup and allows the lid toremain attached to the dirt cup. The hinge mechanism typically islocated opposite the locking mechanism. Once the locking mechanism isactuated and the lid is released, the lid will be supported by the hingemechanism and remain attached to the dirt cup.

Exemplary dirt cup lid mechanisms that include locking and/or latchingmechanisms, along with actuators, are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,055,039;6,192,550; 6,991,666; 7,014,675; and 7,175,682, the contents of whichare hereby incorporated by reference.

While various prior art devices, such as those described above, areknown in the art, there exits a need to provide alternatives to suchdevices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a first exemplary aspect, there is provided a vacuum cleaner dust cuphaving a cup with a sidewall surrounding an open bottom end, and a shelfextending from the sidewall, a lid pivotally connected to the cupadjacent the open bottom end by a hinge. The lid is movable about thehinge between a first position in which the lid substantially covers theopen bottom end of the cup, and a second position in which the lid doesnot substantially cover the open bottom end of the cup. A latch isattached to the lid at a location remote from the hinge, and has acontact surface adapted to engage the shelf to hold the lid in the firstposition. An actuator is mounted adjacent the cup sidewall, and ismovable in a first direction to move the contact surface of the latchout of engagement with the shelf to allow the lid to move about thehinge to the second position. The actuator does not apply anysubstantial force to move the lid out of the first position.

In another exemplary aspect, there is provided a vacuum cleaner dust cuphaving a cup with a sidewall surrounding an open bottom end and a lidpivotally connected to the cup adjacent the open bottom end by a hinge.The lid is movable about the hinge between a first position in which thelid substantially covers the open bottom end of the cup, and a secondposition in which the lid does not substantially cover the open bottomend of the cup. A latch is attached to the lid at a location remote fromthe hinge, and is configured to selectively engage the cup to hold thelid in the first position. An actuator is mounted adjacent the cupsidewall, and is movable in a first direction to disengage the latchfrom the cup to thereby allow the lid to move about the hinge to thesecond position. An air passage extends through the cup and terminatesadjacent the open bottom end of the cup. The lid has a lid openingpositioned to abut the air passage when the lid is in the firstposition. The lid is elastically deformed by contact with the airpassage when the lid is in the first position, thereby generating arestoring force that biases the lid away from the first position.

In still another exemplary aspect, there is provided a vacuum cleanerdust cup having a cup with a vertically-extending sidewall surroundingan open bottom end, and a lid pivotally connected to the cup adjacentthe open bottom end by a hinge. The lid is movable about the hingebetween a first position in which the lid substantially covers the openbottom end of the cup, and a second position in which the lid does notsubstantially cover the open bottom end of the cup. A latch is attachedto the lid at a location remote from the hinge, and is configured toselectively engage the cup to hold the lid in the first position. Anactuator is mounted adjacent the cup sidewall, and includes a firstmember located generally adjacent the sidewall, and a second membermovably attached to the first member. The first member is movable in agenerally vertical direction. The second member has a contact surfacethat is adapted to move in a direction generally perpendicular to thesidewall as the first member moves in the generally vertical direction.The second member is positioned to disengage the latch from the cup whenthe contact surface has moved a predetermined distance from thesidewall.

The recitation of this summary of the invention is not intended to limitthe claimed invention. Other aspects, embodiments, modifications to andfeatures of the claimed invention will be apparent to persons ofordinary skill in view of the disclosures herein. Furthermore, thisrecitation of the summary of the invention, and the other disclosuresprovided herein, are not intended to diminish the scope of the claims inthis or any prior or subsequent related or unrelated application.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is described in detail with reference to theexamples of embodiments shown in the following figures in which likeparts are designated by like reference numerals.

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary vacuum cleaner with which embodiments of theinvention may be used.

FIG. 2A is a fragmented cutaway view of a dirt cup having a lid and lidlatch according to a first embodiment, in which the latch is shown inthe closed position.

FIG. 2B is a fragmented cutaway view of the dirt cup of FIG. 2A, shownwith the lid and latch in an opened position.

FIG. 3A is a detail view of the lid latch of FIG. 2A shown in thelatched position.

FIG. 3B is a detail view of the lid latch of FIG. 2A shown in theunlatched position, but with the lid still closed.

FIG. 4A is a detail view of an alternative lid latch assembly accordingto an alternative exemplary embodiment, shown in the latched position.

FIG. 4B is a detail view of the lid latch assembly of FIG. 4A, shownpartially actuated.

FIG. 4C is a detail view of the lid latch assembly of FIG. 4A, shown inthe unlatched position, but with the lid still closed.

FIG. 5 is a fragmented isometric view of one exemplary embodiment of thebottom of the outlet air passage of the dirt cup assembly of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 6 is a fragmented isometric view of an alternative exemplaryembodiment of a bottom of the outlet air passage of the dirt cupassembly of FIG. 2A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTIONS

The present disclosure provides numerous inventive features relating toa latch mechanism. The latch mechanism may be used as a feature for adirt cup for a vacuum cleaner. Accordingly, the latch mechanism may beconfigured to release a bottom lid of a vacuum cleaner dirt cup. Whilethe embodiments of latch mechanisms described herein are provided in thecontext of a dirt cup for a vacuum cleaner, the invention may be used inother applications where a lid or other closure requires are latchingand/or releasing mechanism. In addition, various features andalternative embodiments of the invention are described with reference totheir exemplary use in certain particular embodiments, but it will bereadily appreciated that the features could alternatively be mixed inother combinations in other embodiments. Furthermore, the variousfeatures described herein may be used separately from one another or inany suitable combination. The invention includes the foregoing and othervariations, as will be appreciated by persons of ordinary skill in theart in view of the present disclosure. The present disclosureillustrating various exemplary embodiments is not intended to limit theinvention in any way.

FIG. 1 illustrates a typical upright vacuum cleaner 10 with whichembodiments of the present invention may be used. The vacuum cleaner 10includes a base 12 that is supported by wheels 14 at the rear, andwheels (not shown) or another support surface at the front. The base 12includes a downwardly-facing inlet nozzle 13, as well know in the art.The base 12 may include a height adjustment mechanism 16, as known inthe art. A rear housing 17 is pivotally connected to the base 12. Therear housing includes a grip 20 for directing the vacuum cleaner 10, andmay include a suction hose 22 for cleaning off the floor, a post-motorfilter 24, and a dirt cup assembly 19 comprising a lid 58 and a cup 18.A filter 26, located within the cup, fluidly covers an outlet passage 28that passes through the middle of the cup 18 to direct air downward tothe inlet of a vacuum fan (not shown). The dirt cup assembly 19,including the lid 58 and cup 18, may be removably connected to theremainder of the rear housing 17. Alternatively, only the cup 18 may beremovable. Vacuum cleaners of this and other types are known in the art,and shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,829,804 and 7,544,244, whichare incorporated herein by reference.

It will be understood that other embodiments of the invention may beused in the foregoing or other kinds of upright vacuum cleaner, or inautonomous vacuums, canister vacuum cleaners, central vacuum cleaners,and so on. In autonomous vacuums, the dirt cup and inlet nozzle aremounted on a vehicle frame, and in canister and central vacuum cleaners,the base is replaced by an inlet nozzle that is connected to a suctionsource and dirt receptacle by a flexible hose, as opposed to a pivotingjoint. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,781,960, 5,813,085 and 6,502,277 provideexamples of such devices, and are incorporated herein.

A first exemplary embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 2Aand 2B, which illustrate a removable dirt collection assembly 200 for avacuum cleaner. The assembly 200 includes a dirt cup 202, that is closedat the top by a filter basket 204 and a removable upper cover 206. Thedirt cup 202 may be, but is not required to be, generally, cylindrical.The dirt cup 202 is illustrated with a portion of its central regionremoved to make the illustration more compact, but it will be understoodthat the dirt cup 202 may have any suitable length. The bottom of thedirt cup 202 is closed by a lid 208, such as described below. The filterbasket 204 includes an air outlet passage 210 that directs cleaned airto a central hole 212 through the lid 208. The outlet passage 210 mayinclude a cage 211 that protrudes from the lower end, such as shown inFIG. 5. In such an embodiment, the cage 211 protrudes into the lid hole212, as shown in FIG. 2A, which helps center the parts and also preventslarge particles or objects from passing through the hole 212. A sealseat 213 may surround the cage 211 to receive a seal 236 such as theones discussed below. In an alternative embodiment, such as shown inFIG. 6, the cage 211 may be replaced by a simple cylindrical or taperedsection 602 that extends from the bottom of the outlet passage 210 tohelp center the outlet passage 210 in the hole 212. It is believed thatproviding a protrusion on the outlet passage 210 is beneficial to helpalign the various parts, and will help prevent assembly when the partsare misaligned, which could result in poor performance and the ingestionof dirt directly into the vacuum fan (not shown). In addition, the useof a protrusion facilitates the use of a bottom lid 208 having a flatinterior (i.e., dirt-facing) surface, which is useful to help preventdirt from clinging to the lid 208 when it is opened for emptying.Although these features are useful, they are not necessary in allembodiments, and in other embodiments a cage, cylindrical taperedsection, or other structure to help orient the parts may not beprovided.

A filter 214 is provided in the filter basked 204 to cover the airoutlet passage 210. In this exemplary dirt collection assembly 200, theair enters the dirt cup 202, swirls around the filter basket in acyclonic manner, and eventually passes through a perforated wall 204 aof the filter basket 204, passes through the filter 214, and then exitsvia the air outlet passage 210. In other embodiments, other filtrationsystems may be used, as known in the art.

As noted above, the dirt cup 202 and dirt collection assembly 200 may bepart of an upright, canister, central or any other type of vacuumcleaner as is well known in the art. In other embodiments, only the dirtcup 202 may be removable, and the lid 206, filter basket 204 (if used)and outlet 210 (if used) may remain in place on the cleaner, or beremovable with the dirt cup 202.

FIGS. 3A and 3B show, in greater detail, a latch assembly 300 that maybe used with the foregoing dirt cup 202 and bottom lid 208, or withother embodiments of the invention. The exemplary latch assembly 300includes an actuator 216, a latch 218, and a shelf 220. The actuator 216may be located generally adjacent to an exterior surface of the cupsidewall. The actuator 216 is mounted such that it may slide along thelength of the cup 202 towards the lid 208. The actuator 216 may beconstrained to prevent it from moving away from the cup sidewall, or indirections other than generally towards and away from the lid 208. Forexample, the actuator 216 may be mounted within one or more sleeves 218that are attached to or integrally formed with the sidewall 112. Itshould be appreciated that the actuator 216 may be mounted to the cup202 in a variety of configurations and locations. A remote actuatingmechanism, such as a remote button 219 formed on the end of the actuator216, a series of levers or abutting rods, a cable, and so on, may beemployed with the actuator 216. A spring 222 may be provided to bias theactuator 216 away from the lid 208 and into a resting position duringperiods of nonuse.

The latch 218 may be located generally vertically below a lower end 224of the actuator 216. The exemplary latch 218 has a head 226 which mayoptionally have a generally triangular cross section, such as shown. Inthe exemplary embodiment, the head 226 has a contact surface 228 (seeFIG. 3B). The contact surface 228 rests against the shelf 220 to holdthe latch 218 in place adjacent the dirt cup 202. The contact surface228 and shelf 220 preferably are arranged to be flat against oneanother, but this is not strictly required. In addition the shelf 220and/or the contact surface 228 may be inclined so that the latch 218will release—rather than break—if a user pulls downward on the lid 208without first attempting to release the latch 218. The shelf 220 may beformed as part of the cup sidewall, formed separately and attached tothe cup 202, or detachably mounted to the cup 202.

The latch 218 is attached to one side of the lower lid 208. At the otherside, the lid 208 may be pivotally attached to the dirt cup 202 by ahinge 230. Thus formed, the lid 208 provides a pivoting door throughwhich contents of the dirt cup 202 can be released. In such anembodiment, the door 208 is pivotally mounted at one side of the dirtcup 202 by the hinge 230 (which may comprise any suitable hinge, such asa simple pin in a hole, as known in the art), and secured in sealingcontact with the bottom edge of the dirt cup 202 by the latch 218. Thehinge 230 preferably is remote from the latch 218, to provide at leasttwo spaced connection points between the lid 208 and the cup 202. Forexample, the hinge may be located on the opposite side of the cup 202 asthe latch 218. Of course, more than one latch may be used, and the latchor latches need not be directly opposite the hinge 230.

In the closed position shown in FIGS. 2A and 3A, the latch 218 engagesthe shelf 220, and a friction and/or vector forces keep the latch 218 inplace and the lid closed. When a user desires to open the lid, the latch218 must be disengaged from contact with the shelf 220. To do so, theactuator 216 is urged towards the latch 218 by the user exerting adownward force directly upon the actuator 216, which may be done via theactuator button 219 or other any other suitable operating mechanism. Asthe actuator 216 is urged downward, its lower end 224 contacts the head226 of the latch 218. As can best be seen in FIG. 3A, the head 226 mayhave an inclined surface 302. The lower end 224 of the actuator 216 mayhave a rounded or beveled shape that slides on the inclined surface 302,but it is more preferable for the end 224 of the actuator 216 to beessentially squared off so that only an edge or relatively small surfaceof the actuator 216 contacts the inclined surface 302. Upon furtherdownward movement, the lower end 224, the actuator 216 wedges betweenthe dirt cup 202 and the inclined surface 302, translating the downwardforce of the actuator 216 into horizontal movement of the latch 218.This movement flexes the latch 218 outwards axially with respect to theaxis of the dirt cup 302, and approximately perpendicular to thedirection of movement of the actuator 216. FIG. 3B is an exemplaryillustration of this motion. In this Figure, Arrow D1 shows the generaldirection of movement of the actuator 216, and Arrow D2 shows thegeneral direction of movement of the latch 218. The amount of forcerequired to flex the latch 218 may be modified by adjusting the shape ofthe hinge 218, as will be appreciated by persons of ordinary skill inthe art. While the illustrated latch 218 uses a living hinge (i.e., aflexible portion that allows pivoting movement), it will be understoodthat the latch 218 may include a true mechanical pivot having a pivotpin and a spring to bias the latch 218 into the latched position.

Once the actuator 216 is fully depressed, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, theactuator's lower end 224 rests upon the shelf 220. At this point, thelatch 218, specifically the head 226, is flexed outward and beyond facecontact with the shelf 220, and the lid 208 is free to open. Inaddition, if the actuator 216 is approximately the same width as theshelf 220, it will apply no further opening force to the latch 218. Insuch an embodiment, the actuator 216 generally only applies a force todisengage the latch 218 that holds the lid closed, but does not applyany force to actually open the lid 208. In such an embodiment, otherforces, such as gravity or the resilient forces described further belowapply all of the force necessary to open the lid 208.

A perimeter seal 232, mounted around the circumference of the door 208(or to the bottom edge of the dirt cup 202), may be provided to helpprevent dirt and air from passing between the lid 208 and the dirt cup202. The seal may be constructed of any suitable material, such asrubber, silicone, flexible plastic, and so on. Releasing the latch 218provides a way to empty the dirt cup 202 of collected dirt and dust. Theperimeter seal 232 may seal between the parts in any suitable way. Forexample, as shown, the seal 232 may include a compression seal 232 athat is compressed axially between the cup 202 and lid 208 by the forceof pressing the lid 208 in place, and a wiping or lip seal 232 b thatslides against the inner wall of the dirt cup 202 and is compressedthereto when the lid 208 is closed. Perimeter sealing arrangements suchas these are known in the art. It has been found, however, that typicalperimeter seals, and other kinds of dirt cup lid seal, often tend tobind the lid to the cup, making it difficult to open the lid to emptythe dirt cup. It is believed that part of this binding force is causedby tactile adhesion between the seal and the cup, and another part ofthis binding force is caused by the tendency of the lip seal 232 b toexpand against the inner wall of the cup 202, and slide along the cupwall over a distance before the lid 208 can pivot freely with respect tothe cup 202.

To address the problem with seals and debris holding the lid closed, inmany instances, the prior art has provided a pushrod-type actuator thatnot only disengages the latch that holds the lid in place, but alsopushes against the lid to drive it open against the binding forcesapplied by the lid seal(s). Such designs typically require the user todrive the actuator through an additional distance to complete theopening procedure, which may result in a failed attempt to open the lidif the user does not fully depress the actuator through its relativelylong travel path. In addition, in such systems the user may apply theopening force too slowly to overcome the friction between the seal andthe cup (which can be exacerbated by the presence of dirt that helpsbind the seal), resulting in a failed opening. Conversely, the user mayapply the opening force too quickly or with too great a force,potentially opening the lid in such a way that the dirt in the cupescapes with less control than may be desired. The additional traveldistance required for the actuating rod can be lesser or greater,depending on the circumstances, but it is believed that the use of lipseals that contact the inner walls of the dirt cup require a greatertravel distance for the pushrod to continue applying force until the lipseal is finally clear of the cup walls.

In order to alleviate the need for the user to manually apply a force toopen the cup lid, the actuator 216 may be only wide enough to move thelatch 218 out of engagement with the cup 202, but not shaped to applyany downward force on the lid 208 after the latch 218 is released, suchas described above. In such a case, gravity or other forces may berelied upon to open the lid 208 against friction forces that hold thelid 208 closed, but the friction generated by lip seals is expected, inmost instances, to hold the lid 208 closed even against gravity. Thus,and additional force may be needed to successfully and reliable open thelid 208. In one embodiment, a spring (not shown), such as the spring 222used to bias the actuator 216 to its inactive position, may be locatedbetween the lid 208 and the cup 202 to force the lid 208 open once thelatch 218 is clear of the shelf 220. In embodiments in which a centralair passage 210 directs the air through an outlet opening 212 throughthe lid 208, additional provisions may be made to apply a force to openthe lid 208. For example, in the shown embodiment, the outlet passage210 includes a compression seal 236 that seals between the outletpassage 210 and the lid 208. This seal 236 may be formed on either thepassage 210 or the lid 208, and is shown in the exemplary embodimentbeing formed on the passage 210. The compression seal 236 and perimeterseal 232 may be molded of a flexible thermoplastic elastomer thatretains its “as-molded” memory of shape. Thus, when the lid 208 isclosed, the seals 232, 236 are compressed to generate restoring forcesthat tend to drive the lid 208 away from the cup 202 as soon as thelatch 218 is released. Thus, according to this exemplary embodiment, theseals 232, 236 are designed to function as springs, exerting a springforce against the closure members following compression thereof. Whenthe latch 218 is released, the seals 232, 236 (or either one of theseals, if only one is used), drives the lid 208 open to allow the cup'scontents to be emptied and to allow the user to perform other functionsthat require access to the interior of the dirt cup, such as replacing afilter contained in the dirt cup. Preferably, the opening forcegenerated by the seals 232, 236 is applied over a sufficient distance tomove the lid 208 until at least the portion of any lip seal opposite thehinge is clear of the cup to help ensure the lid opening. This isillustrated in FIG. 2B, which shows the side of the compression seal 236surrounding the outlet passage 210 still in contact with and thusapplying a restoring force to the lid 208, until the perimeter seal 232is fully clear of the cup 202 at a location opposite the hinge 230.

The restoring force generated by the seals 232, 236 also may apply adownward force to the latch 218 when the lid 208 is closed, generatingfriction between the shelf 220 and the latching surface 228 to assist inkeeping the lid 208 securely closed.

While exemplary embodiments may work effectively as described above, dueto manufacturing tolerances of the parts, potential wear of componentsover repeated release operations, and interference that may be caused bydirt, a release handle 234 (shown only in FIG. 2A) may be added to theouter edge of the dirt cup lid 208. Such a handle 234 may be positionedanywhere on the lid 208, but preferably is located where forces appliedto the handle 234 tend to move the latch 218 out of engagement with theshelf 220 before opening the lid 208. For example, as shown in FIG. 2A,the handle 234 is located on the latch 218, so that a downward force onthe latch 218 will tend to rotate the latch 218 out of engagement withthe shelf 220. In the event the actuator 216 does not force the latch218 beyond the shelf 220, or if the restoring force in the seals 232,236 is insufficient to overcome friction to open the lid 208, the handle234 allows the user to open the lid. The handle 234 also may be used toassist in closing and securing the lid.

In other exemplary embodiments, the outlet passage 210 (or its seal 236)may be formed such that it contacts the lid 208 at a point where the lid208 must be elastically deformed somewhat in order to engage the latch218 with the shelf 210. Doing so generates a restoring force in the lid208, effectively converting the lid 208 into a spring that tends to openitself as the latch 218 is released. The location of such deformationcan be controlled by providing flexible regions in the lid, 208, such asa relatively flexible annular ring surrounding the outlet 212, and theeffect of such flexing on the establishment of a suitable perimeter sealbetween the cup 202 and the lid 208 should be considered when using suchan embodiment. In addition, in such an embodiment, or in any embodimentin which a restoring force is generated in the parts, considerationshould be given to whether the restoring force will diminish withrepeated engagements and disengagements of the latch, and whether suchforces will induce creep or cold flow in the material during longstorage periods. Where stored restoring forces are great, materials thatresist cold flow or creep may be preferred.

A further exemplary embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS.4A-4C, which illustrate an alternative latch assembly 400 that may beused in the foregoing or any other suitable dirt cup. As with the latchpreviously described, the latch assembly 400 of FIGS. 4A and 4B holds alid 408 in place against a dirt cup 402. FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate thelatch assembly 400 in a latched position in which it holds a lid 408closed. FIG. 4C illustrates the latch assembly 400 in a disengagedposition, in which the lid 408 is free to open under a suitable force,such as the force of gravity, a spring, restoring forces in seals, andso on.

The exemplary latch assembly 400 includes a cup 402, an actuator 416, alatch 418, a shelf 420, and a compressible lip seal 432. The cup 402 mayhave any shape, such as generally cylindrical, with a top plane and abottom plane. The bottom plane is covered by a lid 408. As with theprevious embodiment, the actuator 416 may be located adjacent anexterior surface the cup 402, and mounted to slide toward the lid 408.As before, the latch 418 may be attached to the lid and have a head 426that contacts the shelf 420.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 4A-4C, the lower end 424 of the actuator 416is narrower than the shelf 420. Although the actuator 416 may be movedbetween the cup wall and the latch head 426, it is not wide enough,alone, to displace the head 426 far enough to disengage it from theshelf 420. To provide the force necessary to move the head 426 out ofengagement with the shelf 420, a cam 430 is pivotally connected to thebottom of the actuator 416. The cam 430 may be positioned between twolegs (only one is visible in the cross-section view of the Figures)depending from the bottom of the actuator 416, and pivotally mounted ona shaft 434 that extends between the two legs, but other suitablepivoting arrangements may be used. The cam 416 may be molded of a lowsurface tension plastic, such as acetal, or any other suitable materiallike metal or other plastics. The cam 416 may be designed to rotatethrough a limited range of motion, so that it does not move into aposition in which it does not operate as described below. Rotationtravel stops, as are well-known in the art, may be provided for thispurpose. According to exemplary embodiments, the cam 416 is designed torotate through an approximately 45 degree range of motion during normaloperation of the latch mechanism as shown and described.

As shown in FIG. 4A, the cam 430 includes a radial protrusion 432 thatextends further from the cam's pivot axis than other parts of the cam430. When the actuator 416 is in its resting position above the latchhead 426 as shown in FIG. 4A, the protrusion extends generally towardsthe head 426, but hangs at a downward angle. As the actuator 416 ismoved downward, the cam protrusion 426 eventually contacts the head 426and may begin moving the head 426 away from the cup 402, such as shownin FIG. 4B. The angles of the contact surfaces between the protrusion432 and head 426 are selected such that friction between these partsdoes not cause the cam 430 to rotate towards the head 426 until the camprotrusion 432 (or some other part of the cam 430) contacts the shelf420. Once the cam 430 contacts the shelf 420, contact between the camprotrusion 432 and the shelf 420 causes the cam 430 to rotate towardsthe latch head 426 (counterclockwise in these Figures). Further downwardmovement of the actuator 416 causes the cam 430 to continue to rotateuntil the protrusion 432 has pushed the latch head 426 clear of theshelf 420, such as shown in FIG. 4C. At this point, the lid 408 may beopened by gravity or other forces, such as forces generated by springs,seals or part flexure, as described above.

It will be appreciated that using the foregoing mechanism, the verticalforce applied to move the actuator 416 downward is entirely convertedinto a lateral force by the time the actuator 416 bottoms out on theshelf 420. This prevents the actuator 416 from applying any downwardforce to the latch 418 that would tend to move the lid 408 from theclosed position to the open position. Instead, the opening force must beprovided by other means, such as gravity, springs, stored restoringforces in elastic members, and so on. While such force isolation ispreferred, it is not strictly necessary in all embodiments, and it isexpected that a cam such as the one disclosed may be used to apply anopening force in other alternative embodiments.

In an alternative embodiment, the actuator 416 may be sized such that itcontacts the head, instead of the cam 430 contacting the head, untilcontact with the shelf 420 rotates the cam 430 towards the head 426. Inother embodiments, the cam may be replaced by a flexible end of theactuator. In still other embodiments, the cam maybe replaced by aseparate part that expands laterally when it is pressed vertically bythe actuator 416, such as a an expanding “scissor” linkage or apneumatic chamber that expands laterally when pressed vertically. Such aseparate part (or even the illustrated cam), may be mounted on the cup402, instead of the actuator 416. In still another embodiment, the cammay be replaced by wedge or other moving member that is interposedbetween the cup sidewall and the latch head and applies a forceperpendicular to the cup wall to move the latch out of engagement withthe shelf.

The present disclosure describes a number of new, useful and nonobviousfeatures and/or combinations of features that may be used alone ortogether with cyclonic vacuum cleaners and other kinds of suctioncleaning devices having a dirt cup to hold collected dirt and debris.The embodiments described herein are all exemplary, and are not intendedto limit the scope of the inventions in any way. It will be appreciatedthat the inventions described herein can be modified and adapted invarious ways and for different uses. For example, the latching mechanismand actuator may be located inside the dirt cup, such as on the innercup wall or on the wall forming the outlet passage (if an outlet passageis provided). These and all other modifications and adaptations areincluded in the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims.

I claim:
 1. A vacuum cleaner dust cup comprising; a cup comprising asidewall surrounding an open bottom end, and a shelf extending from thesidewall; a lid pivotally connected to the cup adjacent the open bottomend by a hinge, the lid being movable about the hinge between a firstposition in which the lid substantially covers the open bottom end ofthe cup, and a second position in which the lid does not substantiallycover the open bottom end of the cup; a latch attached to the lid at alocation remote from the hinge, the latch having a contact surfaceadapted to engage the shelf to hold the lid in the first position; anactuator mounted adjacent the cup sidewall, the actuator being movablein a first direction to move the contact surface of the latch out ofengagement with the shelf to thereby allow the lid to move about thehinge to the second position; wherein, the actuator does not apply anysubstantial force to move the lid out of the first position.
 2. Thevacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 1, further comprising an air passageextending through the cup, the air passage terminating adjacent the openbottom end of the cup, and wherein the lid comprises a lid openingpositioned to abut the air passage when the lid is in the firstposition.
 3. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 2, wherein at least aportion of the air passage extends into the lid opening when the lid isin the first position.
 4. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 3,wherein the air passage terminates at a cage that extends into the lidopening when the lid is in the first position.
 5. The vacuum cleanerdust cup of claim 2, further comprising an air passage seal positionedto seal the air passage to the lid when the lid is in the firstposition, wherein the air passage seal is dimensioned to be compressedwhen the lid is in the first position, thereby generating a restoringforce that biases the lid away from the first position.
 6. The vacuumcleaner dust cup of claim 5, wherein the air passage seal is mounted tothe air passage.
 7. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 5, furthercomprising a perimeter seal positioned to seal the open end of the cupto the lid when the lid is in the first position.
 8. The vacuum cleanerdust cup of claim 7, wherein the perimeter seal comprises a lip sealthat contacts an inner surface of the sidewall.
 9. The vacuum cleanerdust cup of claim 8, wherein the restoring force biases the lid awayfrom the first position at least until the lid is moved about the hingeaway from the first position a sufficient distance to remove a portionof the lip seal opposite the hinge from contact with the sidewall. 10.The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 1, further comprising a handlemounted to the latch, the handle being configured to allow a user toapply a manual force thereto to assist in opening the lid.
 11. Thevacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 1, wherein the actuator is adapted tomove between the contact surface of the latch and the sidewall andcontact the shelf, wherein the actuator comprises movable member adaptedto rotate about an axis to thereby move the contact surface away fromthe sidewall and out of engagement with the shelf.
 12. The vacuumcleaner dust cup of claim 11, wherein the movable member comprises acam, the cam having a protrusion adapted rotate, by contact with theshelf, towards the latch.
 13. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 1,wherein the actuator is located adjacent an outer surface of thesidewall.
 14. A vacuum cleaner dust cup comprising; a cup comprising asidewall surrounding an open bottom end; a lid pivotally connected tothe cup adjacent the open bottom end by a hinge, the lid being movableabout the hinge between a first position in which the lid substantiallycovers the open bottom end of the cup, and a second position in whichthe lid does not substantially cover the open bottom end of the cup; alatch attached to the lid at a location remote from the hinge, the latchbeing configured to selectively engage the cup to hold the lid in thefirst position; an actuator mounted adjacent the cup sidewall, theactuator being movable in a first direction to disengage the latch fromthe cup to thereby allow the lid to move about the hinge to the secondposition; an air passage extending through the cup, the air passageterminating adjacent the open bottom end of the cup, and wherein the lidcomprises a lid opening positioned to abut the air passage when the lidis in the first position; wherein the lid is elastically deformed bycontact with the air passage when the lid is in the first position,thereby generating a restoring force that biases the lid away from thefirst position.
 15. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 14, wherein theactuator does not apply any substantial force to move the lid out of thefirst position.
 16. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 14, wherein atleast one of the lid and the air passage comprises an air passage sealpositioned to seal the air passage to the lid when the lid is in thefirst position.
 17. A vacuum cleaner dust cup comprising; a cupcomprising a vertically-extending sidewall surrounding an open bottomend; a lid pivotally connected to the cup adjacent the open bottom endby a hinge, the lid being movable about the hinge between a firstposition in which the lid substantially covers the open bottom end ofthe cup, and a second position in which the lid does not substantiallycover the open bottom end of the cup; a latch attached to the lid at alocation remote from the hinge, the latch being configured toselectively engage the cup to hold the lid in the first position; anactuator mounted adjacent the cup sidewall, the actuator comprising afirst member located generally adjacent the sidewall and being movablein a generally vertical direction, and a second member movably attachedto the first member and having a contact surface that is adapted to movein a direction generally perpendicular to the sidewall as the firstmember moves in the generally vertical direction; wherein the secondmember is positioned to disengage the latch from the cup when thecontact surface has moved a predetermined distance from the sidewall.18. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 17, wherein the actuator doesnot apply any substantial force to move the lid out of the firstposition.
 19. The vacuum cleaner dust cup of claim 17, wherein the firstmember comprises a pushrod, and the second member comprises a campivotally mounted to the pushrod.
 20. The vacuum cleaner dust cup ofclaim 19, wherein the cup comprises a shelf and the latch comprises alatch surface that contacts the shelf to hold the lid in the firstposition, and wherein the cam contact surface is adapted to move in thedirection generally perpendicular to the sidewall when the cam contactsthe shelf.